Japanese Wrestling Results
Andrew’s NOAH the New Year 2022 Results & Match Ratings: 1.1.2022
Pro Wrestling NOAH kicks off the new year with a show at the Nippon Budokan! Ultimo Dragon, Keiji Muto and KENTA are kicking off the new year NOAH style!
Pro Wrestling NOAH kicks off the new year with a show at the Nippon Budokan! Ultimo Dragon, Keiji Muto and KENTA are kicking off the new year NOAH style!
Now I haven’t been shy in my general disinterest of wrestling, which honestly NOAH is the only brand that kept my interest, I just was generally disenchanted by wrestling in 2021. Might as well try to kick things off with NOAH’s big Budokan New Year show!
A few of the early attention grabbing highlights, Ultimo Dragon, KENTA and 4 championship matches! Do Marufuji and Keiji Muto hold on to the tag team titles? Does Go Shiozaki return to the mountain top after his injury hiatus and dethrone Katsuhiko Nakajima?
Only one way to find out!
Ratings:
- Junta Miyawaki & Kinya Okada vs Kai Fujimura & Yatsuke Yano: Miyawaki wins via Falcon Arrow @8:39 – ** ½
- Funky Express (King Tany, Akitoshi Saito & Mohammad Yone) vs KONGOH (Tadasuke, NIOH & Manabu Soya): Yone wins via Muscle Buster @8:45 – ** ¾
- STINGER (Seiki Yoshioka & Yuya Susumu) vs KONGOH (HAOH & Aleja): HAOH wins via 450 Splash @11:44 – ***
- Atsushi Kotoge, Daisuke Harada, Hajime Ohara & Ultimo Dragon vs Los Perros del Mal de Japon (Kotaro Suzuki, YO-HEY, EITA & Nosawa Rongai): Ultimo wins via La Magistral @13:51 – *** ¼
- Masakatsu Funaki & Hidaka Ikuto vs Kendo Kashin & Kazuyuki Fujita: Fujita wins via Beast Bomb @12:17 – **
- GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship: HAYATA (c) vs Yoshinari Ogawa: HAYATA retains via Cradle @20:54 – **** ¼
- GHC Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Keiji Muto & Naomichi Marufuji vs Masato Tanaka & Masaki Mochizuki: Geniuses retain via Figure Four @20:50 – **** ¼
- KENTA, Takashi Suguira & Kazushi Sakuraba vs Daiki Inaba, Yoshiki Inamura & Masa Kitamiya: KENTA wins via Go 2 Sleep @25:46 – ****
- GHC National Championship: Kenoh (c) vs Kaito Kiyomiya: Kenoh retains via Roundhouse Kick @24:42 – **** ¼
- GHC Heavyweight Championship: Katsuhiko Nakajima (c) vs Go Shiozaki: Nakajima retains via Emerald Flowsion @30:10 – *****
Results:
Starting off with a musical number, we go into a quick vignette that is shot like a classic Edo Period drama. With Shiozaki entering the evil emperor’s (Nakajima) throne room and they have a stare off before going to a few cuts of the rest of the card’s major combatants. It was a really nice touch, and gets the idea of the returning hero trying to take down the villain over beautifully.
Junta Miyawaki & Kinya Okada vs Kai Fujimura & Yatsuke Yano
Miyawaki gets the Young Boy treatment because he’s been injured for nearly a year. He was starting to get some headway before his injury, but now this is effectively a “get right” match and allows him to set the tone at the historic Budokan.
The less experienced duo of Yano and Fujimura do their best to really try to work over Miyawaki. Lots of great tandem attacks, the Midnight Express Double Drop Kick and just generally throwing the book at the returning elder young boy. Miyawaki starts his comeback with a Tornado DDT, Snap DDT, Fisherman’s Buster and a delayed Falcon Arrow that was just beautiful. Good way to show Miyawaki is back in form.
Funky Express (King Tany, Akitoshi Saito & Mohammad Yone) vs KONGOH (Tadasuke, NIOH & Manabu Soya)
Still not used to seeing Taniguchi as King Tany. It allows for him to actually show a measure of personality which he usually doesn’t, and it’s not super hard to wrap my head around…I just will always see him as the Maybach monster…and now he’s doing disco.
This goes the way most multiman Puro matches do. Each side gets their moves in, all the men get a shot to shine and then we finally start getting to the meat of the match when Yone comes back in and Tadasuke takes a hot tag and peppers Yone with some offense. Tadasuke also does his best Chris Jericho impression before hitting a Swanton and then going for his version of the Jumbo Lariat. Yone buys time with his Disco pose, then catches Tadasuke and that allows the rest of the Funky Express to get in some offense. Reverse Sitout Powerbomb from Tany, Death Sickle from Saito and Muscle Buster from Yone gives the Funky Express the win!
Is this a bad sign for KONGOH? With 3 more matches involving KONGO members, two of them being the biggest titles in the company, is this a harbinger?
STINGER (Seiki Yoshioka & Yuya Susumu) vs KONGOH (HAOH & Aleja)
Stinger starts things off quickly, as to be expected. Junior Heavyweight style doesn’t change too much over all the Puro companies, and when all four of these men are known as more classic Juniors and not mat technicians, this should be quick and striking.
When it comes to my knowledge of these teams, Susumu and Yoshioka are very accomplished as singles and together. They wrestle circles around most Juniors in the business at the moment. Aleja has potential but HAOH is usually more of a glue guy. Only time he really impressed me was his singles match with Kotaro Suzuki, but he at least has the potential to bring it.
With all that said, we get levels of cockiness from the Stinger crew, and the Kongo guys utilize their cleverness and gaps in the defense to stay in the match. HAOH does a move I’ve seen him do a few times, but it’s still cool. He feeds into the corner, jumps on the middle turnbuckle, baits the guy in, walks the ropes away, rewinds and attacks. Kongo takes that advantage and they start quickening the pace, trying to steal one. Tandem Neckbreaker/Leg Drop, HAOH goes for a Leg Twist German, but Yoshioka kicks out, HAOH hits the 450 Splash, and picks up the win!
Kongoh got a win back and it definitely came in a match where they were not favored.
Atsushi Kotoge, Daisuke Harada, Hajime Ohara & Ultimo Dragon vs Los Perros del Mal de Japon (Kotaro Suzuki, YO-HEY, EITA & Nosawa Rongai)
So the beauty in the heel group here is that EITA is known for his Dragon Gate career, but Nosawa got the okay to utilize a the Perros del Mal stable in NOAH. So the Perros have their Dragon Gate guy, and the babyfaces have, well…THE DRAGON that started Dragon Gate.
Kotaro calls out Ultimo first, and they have a decent exchange, where Ultimo gets the standing Headscissors twist off twice. Mark Pickering does a great job at showing the ties between most of the men. Ohara is Dragon’s protégé, and Dragon has faced everyone on the Perros team many times. So I do appreciate that he’s doing great keeping the story threading together. Kotoge and Harada are a tag team known as Momo no Seishun. So whatever ties aren’t present because of Ultimo Dragon, it’s because the Perros are a thorn in many sides.
The Perros really utilize the sliding and tandem dropkicks a lot. Poor Kotoge is on the receiving end of numerous kicks to the head, gets tripped in the corner, posted between his legs and then Suzuki pushes him back into the post using the ropes for added leverage. Kotoge needs to find a way to tag out and possible check to make sure he doesn’t have a concussion or an impromptu vasectomy. After some attempted stopping, Harada finally gets tagged in, evens things out and Ultimo gets his hands on Eita for a few moments.
Nosawa takes the tag from Eita, they clear house a bit and Nosawa tries to embarrass Dragon with a La Magistral, but Ohara breaks it up. Dragon tries his own, but a low blow and distracted referee gives Nosawa the chance to try and take Dragon’s mask. Kotoge makes the save, Eita tries to take out Kotoge but Kotoge keeps the advantage. Dumps Eita out, big Tope con Hilo, so the Babyfaces are rolling. Nosawa tries a few moves into a La Magistral, but Dragon counters that, and finally locks in his La Magistral for the win.
Ultimo is now 4-0 in his career in NOAH. Will he stick around? This was the best I’ve seen Ultimo look in a while.
Masakatsu Funaki & Hidaka Ikuto vs Kendo Kashin & Kazuyuki Fujita
This match went how most of us expected. Kashin got beat up quite a bit, Ikuto threw the decorations at him, Funaki stretched him but Fujita was the enforcer. Once Kashin got Fujita back in, Ikuto died. Ikuto sells the Beast Bomb as a Knockout, so much so that Funaki goes to get water and pours it on his face to wake him up.
Decent enough match, but Fujita is still very legit and when he’s motivated, his matches are impressive to watch.
GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship: HAYATA (c) vs Yoshinari Ogawa
Ogawa really has had a tendency to attack his tag team partners when they hold the singles title. If this goes the way of his Kotaro Suzuki challenge, it was more just to get the challenge out of his system and then back to business as tag champions. The NOAH Junior division is always…interesting if nothing else.
Things start very quickly, Ogawa may have a longer wrestling career than HAYATA does years alive, but that doesn’t slow him down. HAYATA and Ogawa spend some time utilizing the guardrails and outside, before bringing things back in as to not risk a DQ. After some back and forth, Ogawa finally gets a hold of his strategy and keeps a Key Lock in for quite some time. Even rolling through with it, countering HAYATA’s attempted rope run comeback with a Hip Toss into more Key Lock. HAYATA manages to get out and then goes for some high risk spots landing a big Tornado DDT out of the corner, and HAYATA tries to keep things going. As he whips Ogawa into the corner, Ogawa stops himself and counters HAYATA to take back the momentum. HAYATA goes back to the arm he was working on with an Armbar, HAYATA tries to get out of it, but Ogawa transitions it into a Hammerlock and drops the knee into the wrist.
Ogawa is doing a great job keeping up with the speed and still applying his great technical prowess. MY FAVORITE OGAWA MOVE! HAYATA gets the advantage, goes for a Thesz Press from the middle rope, but Ogawa falls backwards so his knee meets HAYATA’s nether region in the most seamless counter to a move. Can’t DQ a guy when the other person drove himself into the knee. This of course gives Ogawa some solid time in control, which he uses the apron, the post, works over some joints and holds a top wristlock as the re-enter the ring and HAYATA barely escapes to the ropes.
HAYATA does manage a small glimmer of hope before posting himself and Ogawa goes back into a Top Wristlock/Camel Clutch variation. HAYATA gets Ogawa off balance, but Ogawa hits a Snap DDT, posts him again, Back Suplex and then Back Drop Driver twice; but HAYATA kicks out. So Ogawa is showing frustration as he’s going to power moves instead of his technical prowess. He goes to the well too many times, HAYATA flips through the Backdrop, hits a Lariat and then a combination of kicks ending with an Enzuigiri. DDT from HAYATA, which makes sense to soften him up for Headache, but then HAYATA goes to the Moonsault and Ogawa gets the knees up.
Both men are making dumb choices because they’re frustrated. HAYATA goes for Headache, Ogawa blocks in, tries to lock in a leg lace or Figure Four on HAYATA, but a quick Up Kick and HAYATA cradles Ogawa tightly for a 3 count! Surprise pin out of both men’s desperation, doesn’t make anyone look bad. Really clever finish.
After the match HAYATA extends the hand, but Ogawa is still hot that he lost because he got out witted and not directly beaten. So Ogawa throws down the Junior Tag title, rejects the handshake and stomps off.
GHC Heavyweight Tag Team Titles: Keiji Muto & Naomichi Marufuji vs Masato Tanaka & Masaki Mochizuki
Mochi starts things off with Muto, which makes sense due to Tanaka having a match earlier in the day for the Zero1 promotion. So this allows Mochi to get some more work against Muto and give Tanaka as long of a breather as possible.
Tanaka and Marufuji go back and forth for a little bit and Tanaka doesn’t look gassed at all. He’s crisp, going move for move and forces Marufuji to avoid the Sliding D or it could’ve been an early issue. Muto gets back in and both Mochi and Tanaka work over the Legend. Indian Deathlocks and a heavy focus on his legs is smart. Not only is Muto’s age a key factor in where to attack, the surgically replaced knees are always a target and after he pulled it back out last year, there has to be a tiny fear of the Moonsault returning.
Mochi and Marufuji square off, as we get for tag team partners teeing off. Mochi’s kicks and Marufuji’s whip like chops trade back and forth. Mochi gets the best of things, gets Tanaka in and Tanaka tries to keep the pressure up. Sliding D off the apron, a few big Brain Busters, but Marufuji keeps fighting back with KO-OHs and clever shots to keep his team in. Multiple Sliding D variations from Tanaka, Marufuji with a flurry of his own offense before Tanaka hits a Kobashi style Spinning Backfist for both to have to tag out.
Mochi and Muto go back and forth. A few great kicks and a block of the Shining Wizard almost spell disaster but Marufuji makes a save. Slingshot Backstabber from Marufuji gives Muto the opening for the Shining Wizard, but a Shotei stops Muto, Tandem Sliding D and Sliding Knee force Marufuji in to make the save. Marufuji pulls off the 2v1, dodges a few attacks, and manages a Jumping KO-OH, Shining Wizard from Muto. Marufuji and Muto pull off some tandem offense of their own, but Mochi refuses to stay down. Mochi refuses to lose to multiple Shining Wizards, so Muto pulls out the Figure Four and Mochi is forced to tap.
The Geniuses mark their first successful defense together.
KENTA, Takashi Suguira & Kazushi Sakuraba vs Daiki Inaba, Yoshiki Inamura & Masa Kitamiya
KENTA and Kitamiya start off, KENTA continues his shenanigans of powdering early. Kitamiya then pushes his power game on KENTA and you can see small glimmers of old KENTA getting dragged back out. As they do the usual take turns approach to tag teams, Inamura comes in and gets tied in the ropes early and KENTA decides to step on the Young Bulldozer’s face. This pisses off Inamura, so even though Sugiura is the legal man, Inamura goes after KENTA and KENTA takes the old NOAH veteran approach. He no sells the offense, grabs him by the hair and this has a lot of shades of when the current vertarns were young facing Kobashi, Misawa, Sasaki and KENTA took great notes. Inamura makes it his life goal to go after KENTA. Inamura catches him by surprise, but as things break down a little later you can see KENTA isn’t playing. He’s no selling Inamura and even no sells Kitamiya’s attack, just walks off. This s really interesting. This is either NOAH KENTA doing his veteran approach, or someone really pissed him off.
WOW, Inamura charges in to break a pinfall and KENTA casually steps back and makes the younger look stupid while stepping on Inaba. This is really classic veteran match play and then Inamura blind sides KENTA. KENTA drops to a knee and stares the kid down. Kitamiya gets Suigura in the Prison Lock, KENTA walks in to break it up, but Inamura comes in and stares down KENTA. After some staring and a few words, KENTA slaps him back into 2021, and Inamura powders looks rattled. KENTA does get the hold broken, but then eats some offense by Kitamiya for his troubles.
Kitamiya and Sakuraba exchanging as things break down a little more, Inaba gets tagged in and tries to speed things up. Sakuraba blocks a Brainbuster attempt by sitting out, but Inaba continues his relentless assault. Smartly, Inamura and KENTA come in together and this was a war. KENTA does more selling for the youngster and Inamura gets some great moment in. Kitamiya might still be a little salty that about KENTA walking away from him earlier, but it paid off in a beautiful old school NOAH way. KENTA landed his offense, and punctuated the match with a Go 2 Sleep.
KENTA puts over Inamura in the post-match, Sugiura asks KENTA to fight for NOAH against the NJPW team on the 8th. KENTA agrees to team with Suigura and Sakuraba again and legitimately looks happy. With KENTA putting Inamura over, it’s either a clever cover that he took the Pillar approach to dealing with younger wrestlers or that was the idea that KENTA was intended to go through the pacings with the tiny tank.
We’ve had such great matches, it’s hard to think that these final 2 still have potential to raise the bar even higher. Kaito and Kenoh have had a brotherly rivalry as have Katsuhiko and Go. So familiarity breeds contempt, and these could set the bar insanely high for the first day of a New Year.
GHC National Championship: Kenoh (c) vs Kaito Kiyomiya
Early on Kaito tries his damndest to apply his athleticism and just generally more flashy moves. Its fun to see how far Kaito has come, since I remember when he first came back from abroad and was really in a bit over his head. He was thrown into the fire and even given a yearlong Heavyweight Title reign as he was learning. Seeing a much more polished Kaito is actually really fun personally.
Kenoh starts beating the hell out of the Supernova, throws him around outside and lands pinpoint Sole Butts, Round Kicks and just general big brothering. Chiding slaps, kicks for the hell of it and Kenoh is trying to prove a point. Kaito manages a Lariat off the ropes, dumps Kenoh to the outside and then charges and does a no touch Tope con Hilo right on to Kenoh.
Kiyomiya locks Kenoh into the Stretch Plum, and it’s nice to see how he started off as channeling Misawa, and now he’s learning to reinvent and adapt other things to slowly become his own person. Kenoh fires as Kiyomiya taps into a bit of the Rainmaker cockiness, since he so desperately wants a match with Kazuchika Okada. We see a Snap Dragon Suplex from Kenoh, Okada-esque Dropkick from Kiyomiya and then Kenoh hits a PK for them to both have a breather spot.
The aggression turns up, Kenoh starts hitting some stiff strikes and looks to go to the ropes. Kenoh’s finisher is a Rolling Double Foot Stomp when he’s not knocking people out. Kaito blocks, Kenoh jumps to the ramp, Kaito tries to follow but Kenoh catches him with a fierce German Suplex. As Kaito is rocked, Kenoh hits a normal Double Foot Stomp, but between how long it takes to roll him in the ring, Kaito kicks out.
Kenoh tries to hit a PK and go back for another Professional Foot Stomp, but Kaito blocks him and starts putting some offense together. Big strikes, Falcon Arrow variations, but Kenoh kicks out. They trade counters on big moves until Kenoh pulls a little Minoru Suzuki, changes levels and tries to slow the Supernova with a Sleeper. Kaito is mostly out, Professional Foot Stomp, but only two. Tiger Suplex, Dragon Suplex, strike exchange. The aggression and frustration is palpable. Kenoh hits a thunderous Roundhouse as Kaito folds over and the referee stops Kenoh from covering Kaito and calls for the bell. Kaito got knocked out, Kenoh retains!
Happy birthday Kenoh, you bastard!
GHC Heavyweight Championship: Katsuhiko Nakajima (c) vs Go Shiozaki
Sufficed to say, these two have a lot of history. As opponents, as one of the best tag teams of the last few years AXIZ. Nakajima betrayed Shiozaki in 2020 during Go’s big title run. Go was able to stifle Nakajima’s rise in 2022, but after injuries caught up with him, Nakajima has had a chance to ascend to the top. Do we get a returning hero celebration, or will Go need more time to get back to his peak performance and fall to the Dark Side of Nakajima?
The first exchange is a kick from Nakajima, and returned with a thudding Shiozaki chop. Nakajima powders and Shiozaki goes after him. Nakajima trips up Shiozaki and sends him face first into the middle turnbuckle, kick to the pad and some nice offense from Nakajima. We then get Nakajima going from corner to corner for his 5 Second Pose on your throat. Nakajima’s personality always shines in his matches but his ability is second to none.
The smartass tendencies of Nakajima continue, and Shiozaki lands a Gowan Lariat because Nakajima is leaving himself open. Machine Gun chops in the corner, and Shiozaki is really playing the hits to prove his shoulder is in good shape. Those chops hurt my chest watching on Wrestle Universe. Nakajima catches Go with a classic Enzuigiri, and that gives him the momentum. Nakajima throws Go out, Apron PK and then just a lot of use of the outside to assist his attacks. They go to the ramp, fight back and forth and then Nakajima gets an idea.
2003 Kobashi and Misawa went through his mind, but Shiozaki blocked numerous times. Shiozaki counters, and then executes a release German Suplex sending Nakajima to the floor from the elevated ramp. Shiozaki manages to get Nakajima back into the ring before 20, goes for a larger move but Nakajima buys himself time by rolling away from it and landing a swift kick to help recollect himself. Fighting Spirit Kicks/Chops trade begins when they get up. This fighting spirit spot is a little reminiscent of the Kensuke Sasaki v Kenta Kobashi chop fest. Granted it’s both of their mentors, but it’s their version of it since Nakajima is known for his kicks.
Sick bump #2 pic.twitter.com/oRlwu28Ek3
— Pro-Wrestling Noah Eng (Hisame, 冰雨) (@Hi5ame) January 1, 2022
Go Flasher stops Nakajima’s run long enough for Shiozaki to collect himself and try to mount a comeback. Shiozaki charges with the Lariat, but it gets countered with a kick, then Nakajima kicks Go in the face and he’s rocked. Vertical Spike from Nakajima and…oh wait Go kicked out! Shiozaki dodges the punt, Nakajima tries to go after him and Shiozaki’s struggling to get up. The referee checks to make sure he’s actually okay, and apparently is. R15 returns a boot from Shiozaki, then as he’s perched, Nakajima goes for an Avalanche Frankensteiner, but Go holds on. Lifts Nakajima all the way up, Avalanche Brainbuster, stumbling and a Gowan Lariat takes Nakajima’s head off but only for 2!
Shiozaki removes the elbow pad, close range Gowan Lariat, also for just 2. Shiozaki goes for his big match move homage to Kenta Kobashi, as he goes for the Moonsault, but Nakajima moves. Punt from Nakajima gets a very weak kick out from Go. Vertical Spike number 2, with a long delay, is – AGAIN Shiozaki kicks out! Nakajima calls Shiozaki to his feet and hits him with a fusion of the Vertical Spike and Emerald Flowsion. Nakajima retains!
Overall Score: 9.5/10
Either my expectations were just insanely low, or whatever, but this show was possibly the best event I’ve seen. It flowed, the four hours breezed by and everything fed well into each other. The last 5 matches were amazing, they all had their own personality; but it was just wonderful to watch.
NOAH continues to impress me the more I watch the product, and hopefully NOAH can drag this level of quality and intrigue out of New Japan. Here’s to hoping that all 3 Wrestle Kingdom days are just as captivating, not just the January 8th event.
KONGOH ended up going 3-1 in all their matches, and the way they ended the show by declaring their intentions again New Japan and saying “WE are NOAH”, is great stuff.
／
📺【ABEMA PPV】絶賛販売中🔥
＼■WRESTLE KINGDOM「新日本プロレス vs プロレスリング ・ノア」横浜アリーナ
配信:1/8(土)こご5時〜
販売:2022/1/13(木)よる11時59分まで日本向けPPV⇒https://t.co/CljBwn9F44
海外向けPPV⇒https://t.co/IUO6DhWjYk#プロレスのチカラ #njpw #noah_ghc pic.twitter.com/KoEi1ztPSr— プロレスリング・ノア ｜PROWRESTLING NOAH (@noah_ghc) January 1, 2022
Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - 4 Corners Podcast (sports)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)
THURSDAY - Nefarious Means
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - 30 Mindless Minutes
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast: The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history) Unidentified History (Ufology) & Game Gone Wrong (Game of Thrones Universe)
Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!
Powered by RedCircle
Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!
Japanese Wrestling Results
(NOAH) NOAH NEWSLETTER VOL.200 ~ 7TH MAY 2023
New alliances, MMA challengers and the return of a beloved tag team!
NEWS
AXIZ reunite
Go Shiozaki lost in his return match at MAJESTIC (4th May at Ryogoku Kokugikan) to Katsuhiko Nakajima’s Vertical Spike. While he was lying on the mat, with a worried Kaito Kiyomiya and Yoshiki Inamura looking on, Katsuhiko Nakajima got on the mic and said, “What is this, Go Shiozaki? This awkward state? Is this “I AM NOAH?” Where did that strong Go Shiozaki go? Shall we do it again? Stand up!”, Everyone, including Shiozaki, thought that Nakajima wanted to fight him again and so Shiozaki used Nakajima to pull himself up. Nakajima had his usual devilish smile on, and grabbed Shiozaki by the hair as if he was going to strike him.
What he actually did was offer him his hand, which Shiozaki took, and to the wild screaming of the crowd, AXIZ reformed and the two would not let go of each other.
Kenoh was outraged and demanded to know what was going on. Manabu Soya later left the ring shaking his head. Backstage, Nakajima confirmed that yes, AXIZ were back and the reason why he had left was because (and this sounds familiar) Kenoh didn’t need him, Kongoh didn’t need him, and he didn’t need them. Kenoh growled that he would destroy anyone who got in his way and that included All Japan, All Japan’s Suwama, Dragon Gate (probably the whole roster) and Katsuhiko Nakajima. Kenoh remarked that usually Kongoh didn’t punish people who left (he probably doesn’t mean the chaotic juniors), but it seems that he himself will have another singles match with Nakajima on the 31st May at Shinjuku FACE. Kenoh has also branded AXIZ as a “thief and traitor duo” and has warned elderly AXIZ fans not to make any bank transfers. He has also claimed that while he was injured, Go Shiozaki is a “salary thief” for doing nothing for NOAH during that time, and not even updating his Twitter.
Related articles
NOAH promise more women’s matches
Following the four woman tag at MAJESTIC, Ryo Mizunami hinted afterwards that NOAH will be holding more and she (and others) want to be a part of this. Nothing more has been said about the possibility of a women’s GHC Championship though.
N-1 VICTORY 2023 Announced
NOAH have announced that the N-1 VICTORY 2023 will make a return in August 2023, and as is tradition, will have the final night held in Osaka in early September. No names have been announced as of yet, but the league will head up for a couple of dates in Sapporo, Hokkaido (NOAH have not been to Hokkaido since before the pandemic when they would traditionally share a ring with Big Japan and then get drunk together over a lost weekend). No names have been announced as of yet.
Masakatsu Funaki challenges Josh Barnett
Following his victory over Shinya Aoki at MAJESTIC, Masakatsu Funaki challenged Josh Barnett, who was sitting at ringside to a match. Barnett accepted, but NOAH are yet to state the date when the match will take place. Funaki also seems to be hinting that his career is now winding down, and he wants to tie up any loose ends; such as the Aoki match and the challenge to Barnett, who he has never faced before, but seems to have always wanted to. Mutoh told Funaki to keep going until he is sixty, but Funaki, who makes no pretense about the fact that he is approaching his mid fifties, seems to think that this is unlikely.
Eita alone, Daga joins “the new STINGER”. HAYATA not welcome either.
During the STINGER vs I guess the last of Perros Del Mal De Japon, Eita and Daga, Eita caught Daga with the Imperial Uno, which meant that Yoshinari Ogawa could capitalize, and he went to pin Eita. However, Ogawa broke the pin and got to his feet slowly, dragging Eita up by his hair. He looked across the ring to Daga, and Daga turned on Eita. Eita, now utterly alone, was beaten up after the match, and no one at all came out to help him as there is now no one left. Backstage, Eita on all fours, said that from now on he would be trusting no one and didn’t believe in friends (NOSAWA posted “…..” to this) and demanded a singles match with both Ogawa and Daga. As for STINGER, Chris Ridgeway said that from now on he, Daga and Ogawa were the new STINGER. Daga gave no reason for his turning on his old friend, STINGER rarely give reasons anyway, and Ogawa said that HAYATA and Eita were no longer considered “friends”. Eita will get his singles matches on the 14th May at Korakuen Hall, and with Daga on the 21st in Kobe. Fans are wondering if Eita and HAYATA will team up, but HAYATA seems to be more preoccupied with the GHC Junior at the moment.
Ring intruder at Korakuen Hall
At NOAH’s Korakuen Hall event on the 29th April, a young woman intruded into the ring at the start of Kaito Kiyomiya, Sean Legacy & AMAKUSA vs Kongoh, and started imploring Kiyomiya to “show us a stronger NOAH” because he was “the savior of NOAH”. She was gently expelled from the ring by Referee Nishinaga, Kiyomiya and the young rookie, Taishi Ozawa. No further information has come from NOAH or any news outlets as to who this young woman was or what the consequence of her intrusion was, and it is rare in Japanese wrestling that a fan should intrude into the ring, but NOAH took the precaution to check bags at their fan event and MAJESTIC, and extra wrestlers were seen at ringside, which fans said felt like security. The very real threat was that she could have had a knife. New Japan’s Toru Yano has also spoken out about fan behavior. He didn’t mention fan invasion specifically, but more wrestlers being harassed by fans when at baggage claim at airports, at convenience stores etc. Kenoh kind of saved the situation by telling Kiyomiya that if he was stronger, then strange people wouldn’t do things like this!
Shinjiro Otani
At an event held on the 6th May to help with his hospital bills, Shinjiro Otani made an appearance. Takashi Sugiura bought him some flowers and Otani thanked him for not giving up wrestling due to the injury that Otani sustained during the title match. He also warned Sugiura, that he would see him in the ring again. Sugiura said he was waiting for that day.
Voodoo Murders vs Kongoh
SUWAMA broke into NOAH’s event at Korakuen Hall on the 29th April and gave Kenoh, a massive Last Ride powerbomb. Shrieking that he was going to take the All Japan World Heavyweight Tag back to where it belonged, i.e. All Japan, he was prepared to come and have a match in NOAH (with Kono his partner) to retrieve them. There then followed a comical scene involving the infamous lifts, where a quaking old man appeared and was told by Suwama to hold the doors. The match has been set for NOAH’s Kobe event on the 21st May. The event will not be broadcast live, but I would imagine this match will be through NOAH’s official Instagram. Suwama got further revenge on Kenoh at All Japan’s show on the 7th when Kongoh and Voodoo Murders had a pre match. Kenoh was given another powerbomb, shoved into a body bag and Voodoo Murders posed with their boots on him, before carrying him backstage on their shoulders. Half in and half out of the bag and dumped on the floor, Suwama told him that now he was in hell, those titles were theirs.
.jpeg)
TITLE NEWS
GHC Heavyweight
In a match that saw Naomichi Marufuji pull out old moves (Shiranui and Shiranui Pole Shift, plus a rope bounce that he hasn’t used for a while) and moves that he has worked on, Jake Lee retained the GHC Heavyweight at MAJESTIC. However, no challenger came forward, and fans were expecting to see Go Shiozaki come out. Jake thanked Marufuji and ran down what he had felt in his past title defenses; Kiyomiya was the future, Nakajima the strength and Marufuji the history. Jake wondered what was next and predicted that on the 14th May at Korakuen Hall, things would start to happen. Jake’s match then is himself teaming with Good Looking Guys (including YO-HEY and Tadasuke) against two NOAH Juniors (Seiki Yoshioka and Atsushi Kotoge) against Kaito Kiyomiya and Takashi Sugiura. Fans think that it will be Sugiura who challenges.
Related articles
“It’s like a dream” – Jake, “Full speed for the first time in a while”, Marufuji
GHC Junior Heavyweight
HAYATA was forced into doing some light comedy, when at the title match signing/press conference, Ninja Mack told him that he didn’t want him to be injured in their title match, and handed him a gift of bandages and athletic tape. HAYATA tried to keep a straight face. However, Ninja Mack found nothing to laugh about when HAYATA beat him and went to hand him his presents back. Apparently, HAYATA kept the bandages, as he only tried to give back the athletic tape. Ninja Mack knocked them to the floor and walked off. The GHC Junior Heavyweight is the only one with a challenger out of all the championships at the time of writing, as HAYATA has nominated Dante Leon as opponent. Dante Leon took the belt from Ninja Mack, but HAYATA feels he has to defeat everyone who held it while he was injured. Dante says he is coming back to take his belt back. Pre matches will take place, with the title match on the 17th June in Nagoya.
Related articles
GHC Junior signing ceremony: Ninja provokes the champion with first aid supplies, HAYATA “excellent”
GHC National
El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr continues to cement himself as one of the greatest GHC National Champions, by defeating Hideki Suzuki at MAJESTIC to retain in an epic match. Suzuki was even booed as he knocked Wagner Jnr down with a punch early on after Wagner Jnr had yelled “Arriba Mexico!”. Suzuki didn’t look as if he was too bothered, and fought most of the match with a cool hard expression. El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr isn’t on any cards for the rest of May 2023, so it looks as if the title will probably be challenged for some time in June.
Related articles
“Real” Suzuki emphasizes “Real Deal” to take over the GHC National, match signing ceremony
GHC Heavyweight Tag
Monster Taniguchi, which his seniors try so hard to awaken, sat dormant at the match signing as Saxon Huxley overturned the table, (which Takashi Sugiura, no stranger to trashing tables during press conferences, helped put back), but then turned his own over with a roar and made off with the tag belts. Sugi very politely helped the staff put the tables back. The team of Sugiura and Taniguchi gave very close to retaining, but they lost the belts when Saxon Huxley pinned Taniguchi with the Hanging Neck Bombs. The new champions celebrated by yelling loudly into the camera, and Huxley repeatedly head-butting his belt. Two new tags arose that night at MAJESTIC; AXIZ, and a new team of Masato Tanaka and Kazuyuki Fujita.
Related articles
Huxley and Taniguchi go berserk overturning tables, Sugiura apologizes
GHC Junior Tag
YO-HEY and Tadasuke (Good Looking Guys Unit) defended the GHC Junior Tag against Alpha Wolf and DragonBane at Korakuen Hall on the 29th April. The lucha brothers came very close to taking the titles, but YO-HEY saved the team by pinning DragonBane. No challengers have come forward, but it does seem likely that they will be challenged by the people that YO-HEY dumped to join GLG; Atsushi Kotoge and Seiki Yoshioka at Korakuen Hall on the 14th May, which is NOAH’s next event. However, Kotoge and Yoshioka may not be the most stable team, as Yoshioka did catch him with a kick accidentally.
EVENT RECAPS & POST MATCH PROMOS
- STAR NAVIGATION 2023
(Saturday April 29th, Korakuen Hall, Tokyo)
- ABEMA PRESENTS MAJESTIC 2023
(Thursday 4th May, Ryogoku Kokugikan)
ELSEWHERE IN NOAH
– Atsushi Kotoge posted a picture of himself when he came to NOAH eleven years ago. He says he is “slightly embarrassed” about seeing himself back then.
– Mohammed Yone and Super Crazy almost left via the wrong gate at MAJESTIC. The trainee standing there tried to tell them, but they seemed insistent, eventually he had to almost stand in their way before they realized.
– Xtreme Tiger returned to the NOAH ring following his concussion
– Most people down the old man VIPER tonic, Masato Tanaka opened it, poured it down his throat and chugged it.
– Keiji Mutoh told Kazushi Sakuraba that he should fight a bear on PPV. Sakuraba said no, he would be killed, and suggested that Mutoh do it. Mutoh said he was an old man who was enjoying retirement by sitting at home and watching historical dramas on NHK.
– Ray Escorpion made his NOAH debut, which involved heel tactics and stalking Dralistico.
– Jake Lee regretted his choice of costume, i.e. his gloves and cape, at the NOAH Fan Event. He said he felt like he needed an icepack under his armpits.
– Eita hid under the ring to jump Yoshinari Ogawa at Korakuen Hall on April 29th. When he crawled out he stretched and yawned, meaning that he fell asleep under there!
– Alejandro was sitting at the commentary table when it got trashed by the Luchadores at MAJESTIC.
CURRENT CHAMPIONS
- GHC Heavyweight Champion: Jake Lee
Challenger: TBA - GHC Junior Champion: HAYATA
Challenger: Dante Leon, GREEN JOURNEY 2023 in NAGOYA (Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall – Saturday, June 17th) - GHC Heavyweight Tag Champions: REAL (Saxon Huxley & Timothy Thatcher)
Challengers: TBA - GHC Junior Tag Champions: Good Looking Guys (YO-HEY & Tadasuke)
Challengers: TBA - GHC National Champion: El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr
Challenger: TBA
THIS WEEK IN NOAH
– STAR NAVIGATION 2023
Date: Sunday May 14th
Venue: Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
Start times: Doors 17:30 JST, Bell 18:30 JST
Broadcast: ABEMA
Birthdays & anniversaries
May 8th 1961: Akira Taue birthday (62)
May 13th 2000: Jumbo Tsuruta memorial (23)
*NOTE ABOUT ABEMA BROADCASTS
For the overseas fan a subscription to WrestleUniverse is recommended instead of a subscription to ABEMA. You can only watch ABEMA shows live (you cannot watch replays should you miss the show), but these always get uploaded to WrestleUniverse a few minutes after the broadcast finishes. I do not recommend that overseas fans subscribe to ABEMA due to the time consuming and expensive issues around finding a VPN that is compatible with their firewall, and ABEMA do not broadcast any other NOAH shows aside from the live broadcasts, they do not show much exclusive content and they do not show vintage or older events.
LINKS
26 year old wrestler Kaito Kiyomiya talks about the importance of the dojo and generational view
NOAH FROM THE VAULT
“Donmai, Donmai” – Mitsuharu Misawa’s diary….he’s being obscene!
With thanks to: Metal NOAH
Picture credits: NOAH.co.jp
Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - 4 Corners Podcast (sports)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)
THURSDAY - Nefarious Means
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - 30 Mindless Minutes
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast: The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history) Unidentified History (Ufology) & Game Gone Wrong (Game of Thrones Universe)
Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!
Powered by RedCircle
Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!
Japanese Wrestling Results
(NOAH) NOAH NEWSLETTER VOL.199 ~ 25TH APRIL 2023
Lots of Championship news! Does Jake Lee have what it takes to captain the ark?
NEWS
“I made you all wait”, Go Shiozaki announces his return
Go Shiozaki made a surprise appearance at NOAH’s Sendai event on the 16th April, and announced that he would return to the ring at “MAJESTIC” at Ryogoku Kokugikan on Thursday May 4th. In an interview done soon afterwards, Shiozaki said that of course his goal was to “get my belt back as soon as possible” and naturally, his target is the current champion, Jake Lee. He is very excited about NOAH now with the influx of foreign wrestlers, and of course, Jake Lee whom he knew from being in All Japan. Shiozaki’s return match will be against Kongoh’s Kenoh, Katsuhiko Nakajima and Manabu Soya. Shiozaki says he will not only be fighting against his opponents, but also the younger generation of NOAH, who he says are “a threat”. NOAH’s generational wheel continues turning.
Related articles
The theme of return is “New Go Shiozaki”, “Fight with five people”, thrilled by the new NOAH scenery
“I have to get my belt back”, Go Shiozaki vows to return early to the title front
Junta Miyawaki returns from Mexico
Junta Miyawaki announced (bilingually as he also announced this in Mexican), that he would be returning from Ultimo Dragon’s training camp, and would make his first match back at Korakuen Hall at STAR NAVIGATION on the 29th April. His opponent will be HI69, who has been on a roll recently. Before he left, Junta Miyawaki said that he would “sip muddy water”, (which basically means to hit rock bottom and crawl you way back up), before he returned to NOAH. HI69 was unimpressed with this statement, saying that Junta had no idea what he was talking about, but he would soon make him realize it.
Women’s matches
NOAH continue to book women’s matches on their bigger shows. Sendai saw Maya Yukihi and Sumire Natsu fight in a singles match, and afterwards mention was made (even fleetingly) of a woman’s GHC championship. The next women’s match will be a four way at “MAJESTIC” on the 4th May between
Maya Yukihisa & SAKI vs Sumire Natsu & Ryo Mizunami.
Xtreme Tiger concussed & Luchadore’s trash the commentary table
Very sadly Xtreme Tiger sustained (probably) a concussion during the match in Sendai and was stretchered from the ring. Fortunately, he could still move as he was seen to be sitting up and sliding himself on to the stretcher. The remaining Luchadores (Doralistico, Dragon Bane, Alpha Wolf, Alejandro & Lanzelot) decided to continue the match, and as they are NOAH Juniors, didn’t bother to tell the ref. They just carried on and during this, Dragon Bane trashed the commentary table by moonsaulting through it. Then everyone else joined in, fighting in the wreckage. Akitoshi Saito (who had been sitting at the table) was seen looking on blankly. Later he made the comment that the table was not made of a material that was meant to be broken.
Yasutaka Yano and Kinya Okada taken off the Sendai card at the last moment
Yasutaka Yano and Kinya Okada were announced to have been taken off the Sendai card at the last moment, meaning that Anthony Green and Akitoshi Saito (who wrestled by taking his shirt off and in his normal clothes) had to fill in for them. NOAH have not announced the issue (illness, injury, etc) but fans think that they may have gone to Mexico for training, albeit why this should be so sudden is a mystery.
Title news
GHC Heavyweight
.jpeg)
Jake Lee retains, Naomichi Marufuji challenges
Jake Lee retained the GHC Heavyweight against Katsuhiko Nakajima, and was challenged that same night by Naomichi Marufuji. The nautical references continued, as Marufuji said that Jake’s steering was making him “seasick” and used a term that he says he came up with before he made his challenge, by saying that “Even if it is rotten, it is Marufuji” (the full saying is “Even if it is rotten, it is still a sea bream”, which basically is like saying “white cat, black cat, as long as it catches mice, then it is a good cat” i.e. quality is quality). Title match has been made for “MAJESTIC” on the 4th May.
The two pre matches have taken place at shows not broadcasted live, Hamamatsu (which was put on WrestleUniverse on the 25th April) and Kyoto KBS Hall (which will be streamed on WrestleUniverse on the 26th April from 18:00 JST). Neither the champion or the challenger scored the direct win over the other, but Jake was seen to hold the belt over Naomichi Marufuji as he, Jake, stood on the turnbuckle and held it even higher.
Related articles
The new champion gives NOAH a warning! Is it okay to stay as NOAH = Marufuji?
GHC Heavyweight Tag
Masa Kitamiya and Daiki Inaba lost the GHC Heavyweight Tag Championship to Takashi Sugiura and Shuhei Taniguchi in Sendai. Shuhei Taniguchi, much to his seniors delight, got the win but there was no chance to celebrate for very long as a new fearsome tag team, who were part of a new unit (and therefore a new power in the heavyweights) appeared on the scene to challenge. Hideki Suzuki announced that himself, Timothy Thatcher and Saxon Huxley, were breaking away from The Sugiura Army, which he said was “over” (fans have long felt that the unit simply fizzled out) and the three of them were breaking away on their own.
Suzuki challenged for the GHC Heavyweight Tag belts on behalf of his partners, whom both came across as having chemistry akin to an old school American tag team (Saxon I know is from England, but you know the vibe I am talking about). Backstage, Hideki Suzuki said their new unit was called “Real”. In their first pre match in Hamamatsu, Suzuki refused to shake hands with Takashi Sugiura and Sugiura was defeated by Saxon Huxley. The next night in Kyoto, Sugiura defeated Huxley, which was Huxley’s first NOAH loss, with the Olympic Slam and labelled himself as “Beastmaster”. There was also some slight friction appearing between Takashi Sugiura and Shuhei Taniguchi, as Taniguchi did the same “I heard you lost today?” kind of comment back to Sugiura, and once again refused to shake hands with him when Sugiura offered and just walked off when Sugi asked, “Did you win?”.
GHC National
In an epic match, El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr defended the GHC National against Jack Morris, and the two of them shook hands afterwards and patched up their friendship. Backstage, Hideki Suzuki appeared in the comments booth when Wagner Jnr was in it, clapping sarcastically and saying that he was coming for his belt. Suzuki also made a very poetic comment about the challenge.
“Because Wagner Jnr is the sun of Mexico, I will take him deep into the ocean. We will sink together, and only I will rise”
Their two pre matches so far have been inconclusive as they head towards the title match at “MAJESTIC” on the 4th May at Ryogoku Kokugikan.
GHC Junior
AMAKUSA did not do well in the pre matches against HAYATA, and HAYATA ran him into the ground in the title match in Sendai, winning in thirteen minutes and four seconds. In order to forestall anyone who thought they were going to challenge, he was picking up where he left off, and his next challenger would be Ninja Mack. Ninja Mack had challenged HAYATA in late 2022 for the belt, but he had won it when HAYATA was injured, and the belt was awarded to him. To HAYATA, he needed to defeat Ninja Mack first before dealing with anyone else. The two pre matches have not gone well for HAYATA, although Ninja Mack hasn’t got the win over him directly, he has still gotten the win for his team at one point, even if one of the matches was won by someone else, which for him counts as a victory over HAYATA.
GHC Junior Tag
Fans knew that Yoshinari Ogawa and Eita were going to fall apart. YO-HEY knew this too, but knew enough about his opponents, to be wary. In the end, a misfire by Eita, who caught Ogawa in the face with a kick, letting Tadasuke get the win, made the team implode. Ogawa might have come to the ring ignoring Eita’s very existence, but by the end of the match the two were brawling and the fight went backstage. After kicking Ogawa in the crotch, Eita announced that the only person he trusted was Daga. Daga will return to NOAH at “MAJESTIC”, with the one person who hasn’t turned on Ogawa (although he was wary of his aligning with Eita), Chris Ridgeway, who is returning to NOAH at Korakuen Hall on Saturday 29th April.
The new GHC Junior Champions, Good Looking Guy’s YO-HEY and Tadasuke, were challenged backstage by Dragon Bane and Alpha Wolf, who told them they were going to be taking the belts back to Mexico. The brothers have run riot on the junior tag champions, defeating them in the pre matches, Alpha Wolf in a singles against Tadasuke. Title match will take place this Saturday at Korakuen Hall.
EVENT RECAPS & POST MATCH PROMOS
- ABEMA presents GREEN JOURNEY 2023 in Sendai (Sunday April 16th)
- Act City Hamamatsu (Saturday, April 22nd)
- Kyoto KBS Hall (Sunday, April 23rd)
ELSEWHERE IN NOAH
– Because they were both champions facing their challengers, YO-HEY offered HAYATA a handshake in Kyoto. HAYATA reacted in usual fashion (he refused) but the two were seen to work together…
– Kongoh appeared in a short Kenoh Channel video, where each of them ate one of Shuji Kondo’s financiers and talked about the merch table. Katsuhiko Nakajima very neatly put back a packet of Naomichi Marufuji’s curry, which Kenoh had thrown.
– Although he is no longer appearing in the ring, NOSAWA Rongai was seen watching at the Hamamatsu show. He’s not a member of the audience however, as he seems to be travelling with them – Kenoh said that he was glad Go Shiozaki had returned as he could not “wait to beat the shit” out of him.
– Atsushi Kotoge has revealed his beloved Shiba is called “Chikuwa”. When he left for NOAH’s weekend shows, he told him he was leaving him as watchdog to guard the family.
– Mercedes Monet said she wanted a match with “Marufugi”. “Marufugi” said he wanted one with her too.
– YO-HEY and Yoshiki Inamura will appear on “All-Star Chorus Battle” on May 14th for Fuji TV. The premise of the show is that they will team with five other people, sing the hit songs of the Reiwa era and compete as a chorus for a championship.
– A picture taken by NOAH’s official photographer in Kyoto was captured at precisely the moment that Seiki Yoshioka was diving off the top turnbuckle. The angle of his body made him look as if he was leaping out of the stained glass behind him. Ironically, he seemed to be leaping from the roof of the Ark. Also photographed against The Ark was Yoshiki Inamura, who put a Dove above his head.
CURRENT CHAMPIONS
- GHC Heavyweight Champion: Jake Lee
Challenger: Naomichi Marufuji, ABEMA presents MAJESTIC 2023, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Thursday May 4th - GHC Junior Champion: HAYATA
Challenger: Ninja Mack, ABEMA presents MAJESTIC 2023, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Thursday May 4th - GHC Heavyweight Tag Champions: Takashi Sugiura & Shuhei Taniguchi
Challengers: REAL (Saxon Huxley & Timothy Thatcher), ABEMA presents MAJESTIC 2023, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Thursday May 4th - GHC Junior Tag Champions: Good Looking Guys (YO-HEY & Tadasuke)
Challengers: Dragon Bane & Alpha Wolf, STAR NAVIGATION 2023, Korakuen Hall, Saturday April 29th - GHC National Champion: El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr
Challenger: Hideki Suzuki, ABEMA presents MAJESTIC 2023, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Thursday May 4th
THIS WEEK IN NOAH
- STAR NAVIGATION 2023
Date: Saturday April 29th
Venue: Korakuen Hall
Start time: 18:30 JST (doors open 17:30)
Broadcast: ABEMA (Live)
BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES
29th April: Atsushi Kotoge debut anniversary (2005)
29th April: Tadasuke debut anniversary (2007)
*NOTE ABOUT ABEMA BROADCASTS
For the overseas fan a subscription to WrestleUniverse is recommended instead of a subscription to ABEMA. You can only watch ABEMA shows live (you cannot watch replays should you miss the show), but these always get uploaded to WrestleUniverse a few minutes after the broadcast finishes. I do not recommend that overseas fans subscribe to ABEMA due to the time consuming and expensive issues around finding a VPN that is compatible with their firewall, and ABEMA do not broadcast any other NOAH shows aside from the live broadcasts, they do not show much exclusive content and they do not show vintage or older events.
NOAH FROM THE VAULT
“Donmai, Donmai” – Mitsuharu Misawa’s diary
With thanks to: Metal-NOAH
Picture credits: NOAH.co.jp, Pro Wrestling DX
Chairshot Radio Network
Launched in 2017, the Chairshot Radio Network presents you with the best in sports, entertainment, and sports entertainment. Wrestling and wrestling crossover podcasts + the most interesting content + the most engaging hosts = the most entertaining podcasts you’ll find!
MONDAY - Bandwagon Nerds (entertainment & popular culture)
TUESDAY - 4 Corners Podcast (sports)
WEDNESDAY - The Greg DeMarco Show (wrestling)
THURSDAY - Nefarious Means
FRIDAY - DWI Podcast (Drunk Wrestling Intellect)
SATURDAY - The Mindless Wrestling Podcast
SUNDAY - 30 Mindless Minutes
CHAIRSHOT RADIO NETWORK PODCAST SPECIALS
Attitude Of Aggression Podcast: The Big Five Project (chronologically exploring WWE's PPV/PLE history) Unidentified History (Ufology) & Game Gone Wrong (Game of Thrones Universe)
Chairshot Radio Network Your home for the hardest hitting podcasts... Sports, Entertainment and Sports Entertainment!
Powered by RedCircle
Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!
4 Corners Podcast: Did The Red Sox Panic?
Dave & Patrick discuss a seismic shift in Boston as the Red Sox clean house. Plus, NFL Draft thoughts and...
4 Corners Podcast: NHL & NBA Playoff Preview
Dave & PC Tunney preview the NHL & NBA Playoffs!
4 Corners Podcast: The Masters, NBA & MLB
Join Patrick and Dave weekly as they explore the 4 Corners of the American sports scene.
4 Corners Podcast: College Madness
The guys recap the Final Four, discuss March Madness expanding, and discuss an Executive Order that the guys actually agree...
4 Corners Podcast: Return to the Dance
Illinois & Arizona return to the Big Dance. Plus, lots of other March Madness talk, the latest Tiger Woods debacle,...
Bandwagon Nerds #339: Everybody Dies
Your favorite Nerds review Daredevil: Born Again and The Boys. Paramount, Disney and Oscars news. All that plus we take...
Bandwagon Nerds #338: Impossible Choices
Your favorite Nerds review the season finale of Invincible, as well as continuing their review of Daredevil: Born Again and...
Bandwagon Nerds #337: Parallels & Purpose
The NERDS continue to review Invincible, Daredevil, and The Boys. Plus, we take a look at the new trailer for...
Bandwagon Nerds #336: Invincible, Daredevil, The Boys… Oh My!
Don't miss the Bandwagon, NERDS!
Bandwagon Nerds #335: Glenn Gets His Revenge!
The Nerds check out trailers for Master of the Universe and Supergirl, and break down tremendous episodes of Invincible and...
Today In Pro Wrestling History: May 5th
Some of these days really make me thankful for having a wider scope of wrestling companies than the average bear....
Mitchell’s NJPW Wrestling Dontaku Results & Report! (5/4/26)
Wrestling Dontaku, Night Two!
Mitchell’s WWE Raw Results & Report! (5/4/26)
Just sign on the dotted line!
WWE stars praise Natalya and TJ Wilson’s The Dungeon 2.0 for sharpening in-ring skills
Natalya shared a new video on X showcasing training sessions at The Dungeon 2.0, the renovated school she runs with...
WWE Names Hunter Selby Director of Show Production and Design
WWE has appointed Hunter Selby as its new Director of Show Production and Design, a role Selby confirmed on LinkedIn,...
Reports: WWE/TKO Seeking Significant Talent Pay Cuts
Two separate reports indicate WWE and its parent company TKO have reportedly asked talent to accept pay reductions, with one...
Report: New Day Exit Was Planned a Week in Advance; More WWE Releases Possible
A backstage report indicates the New Day’s surprising WWE departure—including members Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods—was premeditated roughly a week...
Newman puts IWGP title opportunity on the line in tag match at Ignition to Dominion
IWGP Heavyweight Champion Callum Newman has challenged Yota Tsuji and Shingo Takagi to a high-stakes tag match at Ignition to...
Kairi Sane Could Return at WWE Backlash to Finish Asuka vs. IYO SKY Storyline
WWE insiders tell Bryan Alvarez there’s a better-than-even chance Kairi Sane will appear at Backlash this Saturday in Tampa to...
Jade Cargill Frustrated Over Limited In-Ring Time as WWE Women’s Champion
Jade Cargill has spoken out about her dissatisfaction with the limited in-ring opportunities she received during her reign as WWE...
-
News5 days ago
Alexa Bliss Addresses Dark Side Update After Her 2025 WWE Return
-
Headline News5 days ago
Will Kroos Shocks WWE NXT with Explosive Debut
-
AEW News3 days ago
Anna Jay Confirms AEW Contract Nearing Expiration, Denies Other Rumors
-
News5 days ago
Royce Keys Reveals Longstanding Ties to Jacob Fatu and The Bloodline